Online dating and romance are more common than ever, and so are romance frauds. To win a victim’s love and trust, fraudsters frequently create a false online identity. The illusion of a close relationship allows scammers to manipulate or steal from the victim.

The illusion of a close relationship lets scammers manipulate or steal from the victim.

Scammers then target these people who are looking for partners. They first pose as a prospective friend. Then, the con artists use emotional blackmail to extract money, private information, and presents from the victims.

What is a romance and dating scam?

Social media and dating applications are used by people worldwide to find partners. Sadly, some of them are less fortunate and wind up being defrauded. In 2020, people were harmed to the tune of $304 million by dating and online romance scams.

Fake profiles on dating apps and websites are used in online dating and romance scams. Through social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram, scammers target their victims. To gain the victim’s trust, the con artists establish friendships and converse with them frequently throughout the day. They will ask for money shortly after that.

They give the impression that they reside abroad.

How Do Dating and Romance Scams Operate?

Most dating and online romance frauds occur on dating websites, but con artists also initiate contact via email and other social media. Sometimes, con artists call the victim and claim something is wrong, initiating communication. Such a practice is also referred to as “catfishing.”

Scammers create online phony accounts and websites to lure victims. They often adopt a fake name or a real human identity, such as that of military personnel, an aid worker, or someone employed abroad.

Scammers specializing in dating and romance will develop strong feelings for you quickly. However, they encourage you to continue the relationship and use texting applications, private chat or call messaging. These con artists claim to be from Australia or another western nation but currently work abroad due to unavoidable circumstances.

The con artist will take several steps to win your trust and keep your interest. They’ll lavish you with love, divulge private information, and start giving you presents. They say they’ll come to you and book flights, but they never do. The “romance of a lifetime” is instead built up over months.

The con artists claim to be;

• a doctor working abroad or,
• to work on an oil rig in the Middle East or,
• from the USA military force.

Dating and romance scammers demand money from their victims:

• to cover their trip costs,
• their medical costs,
• a modest customs tax,
• their debts,
• and the cost of their travel documents.

Scammers demand payment from their victims through;

• gift cards for Google Play,
• Amazon,
• Steam, or iTunes,
• wire transfers, or reloading cards like MoneyPak.

Never give someone you have never met money or gifts.

Once they have your confidence and you start feeling secure with them, they may occasionally gently approach you for money, ask you outright, or request your banking or credit card information. The con artist will also request your private movies or pictures for themself.

Scammers pretend to have a personal emergency and request money when perpetrating a dating scam. Then they will claim that a member of their immediate family has COVID-19 and needs money because they cannot afford an ICU bed. The con artists then assert that they lost a large sum of money because their business closed due to COVID-19 or that they were robbed.

They will say they wish to see you and go to your nation but cannot do so without your assistance. Therefore, they request you to lend some money to arrange for their flight or other travel-related fees.

They occasionally employ you as a middleman by mailing you expensive products like phones, computers, gold, silver, or even foreign cash and asking you to deliver them to a specified place. Of course, they will always come up with a new excuse, but it is simply a way to hide their unlawful behavior.

The con artists also demand that you purchase the goods on your own and ship them to a location they provide. They might even transfer funds to your bank account and utilize it as a secure entry point for their criminal activities.

How to combat online dating and romance scams?

• Talking with the con artist must end immediately.
• Discuss your new relationship with your friends and family.
• Search for the job profile and conduct research online.
• Look up the person’s profile photo in reverse.

The scenarios above are examples of money laundering, which is unlawful. Do not send your money to anyone that you do not know.

They’ll try to entice you by offering you a share of the enormous sum of money, gold, or silver they’re trying to transport out of the nation. The con artists will also demand payment for taxes and administrative costs.

Being a part of global illicit systems puts people’s safety in danger because of these dating and romance scammers. Additionally, con artists could try to lure their victims abroad, placing them in dangerous situations that can have negative moments.

Regardless of how they con you, you risk losing a lot of money. Each year, billions of dollars are robbed from victims worldwide by online dating and romance scams. Unfortunately, you can never get the money back that you paid to fraudsters, and you can have psychological distress due to being betrayed by someone you believed loved you.

What to Look for in a Romance Scammer?

You meet someone online, and a few days later, they begin to feel strongly about you. As a result, they want to communicate with you privately. The person will try to take you out from there on a more personal application if it is a dating application.

Their Facebook or dating profile details frequently change, and occasionally, things don’t line up. For instance, they claim to have attended a reputable university while speaking in slurred English.

Once they have your trust, they will tell you a tale to get money from you, your bank account, or your credit card information. They may even ask you for gifts. Finally, they pretend to adore you while sending you messages in bad English that appear to be copies of ones found online.

They will ask you for more money if you send it to them, and if you don’t, they will become frantic, impatient, and direct.

Promises are nothing to them. They constantly find a reason to avoid seeing you or if they need money.

How to Protect Yourself from Romance Scammers

• Never send your cash to a person you have never met.
• If the approaching individual displays the preceding tendencies, the likelihood that they are a con artist rises even further.
• If they provide you with an image, use Google or TinEye to perform a reverse image search on it.
• Look for subtle clues and errors like poor grammar, gaps in the stories they tell you, and instances where the camera never works when you try to call someone via Skype or Zoom.
• Take safety measures if you exchange photos with one another because you haven’t met. Scammers steal your pictures and exploit them to extort the target.
• Do not communicate with anyone who requests payment via wire transfer, money order, foreign money transfer, electronic currency, or pre-loaded card.
• Since money laundering is illegal, never lend money to a stranger.
• Be cautious while entering personal information on social media apps. Con artists will use these details and images to make a false ID or pick on you.

What Should You Do If You’ve Fallen For A Dating or Romance Scam?

The team of experts at Whitehat Recovery can help you recover your money if you’ve already been scammed out of it. If you’re unfamiliar with us, we are a group of professionals working to establish a safe trading environment for everyone. We have recovered $19 million thus far and won’t stop until every trader can deal with reliability.

It is acceptable to hunt for love online, but you should exercise caution because some websites and people may be con artists. We protect you, your interests, and yourself against possible romantic fraud. Unfortunately, trusting people readily is not an option right now because the times are difficult. So Stay Cautious and Be Safe.